


ハナハナの実  (Hana-Hana no Mi)

by DreamOfStarsAndRoses



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Gen, No heavy romance, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Zoro centric, is that a thing?, no beta we die like oden, zoro doesn't like the mark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 02:40:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,576
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30099042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DreamOfStarsAndRoses/pseuds/DreamOfStarsAndRoses
Summary: Robin was a woman of many masks but he was surprised to see the widening of her eyes as her gaze locked onto the flower above his heart. When he finished squeezing the water from his shirt, he turned to her, pretending to not notice her expression.
Relationships: Nico Robin/Roronoa Zoro
Comments: 13
Kudos: 35





	ハナハナの実  (Hana-Hana no Mi)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ZoRobin discord server](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=ZoRobin+discord+server).



> OKAY SO IM SO HAPPY I MADE A TO-DO LIST FOR MY UPDATES. I'll be finishing my kny fics and then focus on my sweet zorobin. 2nd semester is almost done *fist punch and I just did all my shitty requirement (news flash there's another pile of fuckery waiting for me but hey i survived!)

It bothered him the way it shouldn't have. As a child he never cared about the flower etched just above his heart and how it throbbed painfully. It couldn't compare to the pain he got from bearing the brunt of the blade. Yet, somehow the pain felt beyond superficial. It struck him to the point he went numb. The master of the dojo commented on the mark and said, 

"That is a mark of a soulmate, Roronoa-san." He said.

Zoro looked up at him. He touched the mark contemplatively. Mark of a soulmate? He wanted to scoff. 

"What of it?" He said snappishly.

"They're rare, for one." The older man said. "I only know one person who has it and she was my late wife." He smiled sadly. 

"This is just a tattoo." He protested. Zoro didn't remember getting one. He knew he never did get one since the only thing that would decorate his skin was his scars from the battlefield. Koushiro tutted disapprovingly and the green-haired boy eyed him in somewhat annoyance.

"They're animated. See? The petals, they sway." The man said. Zoro looked down at his chest once again. "You can also sometimes smell flowers, no? That's your soulmate. As long as the scent lingers, it means that person is safe."

Zoro had always known the sweet smell all his life. Was that how his soulmate smelled like? He shook his head. "Sometimes ... sometimes it aches. The flowers and it's hard to breathe."

Koushiro looked at him concernedly. "Poor thing."

"Will they be okay?" He asked, trying to sound nonchalant. The dojo master smiled. 

"As long as the scent, lingers." He reminded.

"Do you have a mark too?"

"yes." The man replied. "but it faded when my wife died. When a soulmate dies, they carry their other half's mark with them or they'd never be complete."

Zoro's brow furrowed. "Well, that's selfish and dumb. What about the living other half? Is he supposed to spend the rest of his days alone?" He thought it extremely unfair. 

Koushiro laughed. "You're right."

When he grew up, he left the dojo and the island. He lived by the days through his bounty hunting. He demanded nothing. Just sake and 3 meals a day — 2 was already fine, really. And there came the strawhat boy when he was about to be executed. Joining a pirate crew was never his intentions. But Luffy was merely a skinny 17 year old boy who had a small boat and declared himself future pirate king. He ought to laugh but again who was he to belittle someone else's dream when his are not so different? His new captain had resolve and ambition — something he had never seen in all of his time in East Blue.

It was almost foolishness but he reveled in Luffy's horizons. 

Then the crew expanded. Luffy wasn't eccentric — didn't seem to be picky in choosing his crew but he was clever in his way and he had an eye for promising crew members. It took no time for Merry to be accustomed to the newest additions. There really was no mistake here. With Luffy, he would be able to pursue his dreams and become the world's greatest swordsman.

His mark no longer ached that much. But he always smelled the flowers as though the person was near. It comforted him that she ... was safe. Did he care? Maybe but not as much as his growing concern for his own nakama. Every one of them was reckless. Him, included. Zoro rarely thought about the flower. The crew took notice of it, of course. Nami had teased him mercilessly. Sanji just scoffed at him, muttering how lucky he was. 

He didn't understand the concept of this mark. He didn't understand what's to be envious of a self-inflicting mark who barely contributed to his growth. He wished they never crossed paths. Women were not his strong suit. Much less relationships. They served more as an impediment than the drive to protect.

Then came the woman who had hana hana no mi whose first words were how nice their ship was. He was so startled, immediately turning around like the rest of the crew to demand who she was. She seemed so patronizing, a stranger who was more or less harmless. And then she showed her ability.

He followed the petals borne from her abilities and he thought, "fucking gods" — not that he believed in them but fuck. But she can't. It was a coincidence. He convinced himself it was. When she took down both Usopp and Sanji — his breath hitched. Was he enraged? Excited? He wasn't but his curiosity didn't waver. But at the moment, they were saving Vivi and her country from her and Crocodile.

And then Luffy did the most ludicrous thing after departing from the kingdom. He let her join the crew. He was distrustful, pointedly ignoring her to the point of being rude. And she was being nice. Sickening so and he didn't know how to receive it. Even Chopper who was incredibly wary of her, warmed up in no time.

When the rest of the crew were blowing out cannons with Luffy exclaiming his amazement near the figurehead, he rested on the quarterdeck, trying to drown the noise. He sneezed and his neck prickled.

He looked at the woman approaching him with a blanket in his peripheral. He clutched his Wado Ichimonji in reflex. She paused.

"I told you, never stand beside me."

She smiled gently. "You're going to catch a cold like that."

He continued to ignore her. "People who catch colds have weak hearts."

"Then, somewhere someone must have heard the rumors about Pirate Hunter Zoro." She replied, almost teasingly if it weren't for her serious tone.

"I've never called myself Pirate Hunter." He said calmly.

"Then," she said. "Who was it that gave you such a splendid name?"

His brow twitched slightly. He lifted his head to look at her and sighed inwardly. "Who knows. It's got nothing to do with me."

Another blow from the cannon was heard. She walked away. He closed his eyes, willing himself to relax as she sat down across him. _Damn, woman. Ship's too small for the both of us_. He still kept a critical eye on her. He knew she knew and she often gave him a flat smile as an exchange. She proved to be a stubborn woman, often offering him tea — _"I don't drink tea."_ and making a small chat like how good the weather was — _"there's a thunderstorm."_ She would beam at him and reply, _"I know."_

She was ... morbid in a odd sort of way that wasn't insensitive. 

"I think too much." He grunted out loud. He's observing her because she's suspicious. That's the only fucking reason. And yet, he knew too much of her sleep schedule, how she liked her tea (with ginger) with a sandwich — a coleslaw, she said (it was a type of sandwich he didn't know the fuck existed), and much time she spent on reading a book in one sitting. 

And he couldn't deny that his distrust for her slightly wavered. It was still there. He knew in his gut something would happen but she hadn't done anything. At least, not yet. He decided to drop his guard for a moment when they arrived to Skypiea. 

"Will that suffice?" She threw down a vine and he caught it. Testing the strength of the vine, he prepared his voice. Nami and Robin waited for their turn in the back.

Then he swung.

"OHoooOOHHHoooH." 

He landed effortlessly and passed the vine to Robin who dropped beside him in a second. He kept a straight face, the childlike glee in him rampaging from the adrenaline he got from swining the vine. He was fucking sure she's never seen him like that but people keep forgetting he's nineteen. He was a hardass with no patience with nonsense but that was a big ass vine.

Was he about to do this shit with her watching? Screw it.

"Nami wondered if that was your call of bravery." She said, expression blank.

He snorted. "I knew what I must do."

They watched as Nami screamed. Robin caught her and smiled, "how very brave of you."

"Sorry for all the trouble."

"It's nothing." The woman started ahead of them. The redhead panted beside him. 

Zoro tried to do the call once again and quipped, "It's because you didn't do the call." 

"THAT'S NOT THE PROBLEM!"

They walked down the path. He recalled the moment he removed his shirt. Robin was a woman of many masks but he was surprised to see the widening of her eyes as her gaze locked onto the flower above his heart. When he finished squeezing the water from his shirt, he turned to her, pretending to not notice her expression.

She must have recognized it from somewhere. Or she was surprised he possessed a soulmate mark. Maybe she knew it herself. Knowing that getting to the end of this would only be bothersome to his swordsmanship, he shrugged it off.

"Swordsman-san, you're veering from the path." Robin reminded him.

"No, I'm not." He said, walking past them.

"Moron, are you blind?" Nami said, pulling him by the scruff of his collar. He coughed as his throat was caught in her pulling.

"That's the way to south!"

"Didn't you say earlier that when you're lost, don't move?!" 

He growled.

"Goddamnit."

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if it was a rough read. I can't sit through to check the errors. Anw, join our shippy discord server.
> 
> [ZoRobin Shenanigans](https://discord.gg/PTQ43y8xkM).


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